Bucking the NFL's trend of the past half-decade, Pettine emphasized that it's "extremely difficult" for a quarterback to succeed as a rookie starter.

"When you look at the history of the league whether it was (Tom) Brady or whether it was Aaron Rodgers, or Carson Palmer (they waited)," Pettine explained Tuesday, via The Plain Dealer. "Even Russell Wilson sat for a little bit and (Colin) Kaepernick was a package player his first year."